Racing With the Moon

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Racing With the Moon

PG

1984

1h 48m

Romance

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Tomatometer

Popcornmeter

67%

Tomatometer

12 Reviews

61%

Popcornmeter

2,500+ Ratings

In their last weeks before deployment to World War II as Marines, teenage friends Henry Nash (Sean Penn) and Nicky (Nicolas Cage) try to make the best of the time they have left in their small California town. When Nash spots Caddie Winger (Elizabeth McGovern), a new girl in town he mistakenly believes to be wealthy, he sets about winning her over. But the good times are ruined when Nicky finds himself trying to solve a serious predicament, and implicating Nash and Caddie in the process.

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Time Out

06/24/2006

Very little seems to happen in this social vacuum, and none of it is memorable.

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Roger Ebert

Chicago Sun-Times

10/23/2004

3.5/4

It's easy to end a movie with 'I love you,' but it's hard to get there honestly.

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Vincent Canby

New York Times

05/20/2003

4/5

An exceptionally appealing movie about subjects you may think you've already had enough of -- growing up, first love and the shouldering of arms and other responsibilities.

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Brian Orndorf

Blu-ray.com

03/09/2025

B-

"Racing with the Moon" commences with interesting scenes of friendship and courtship, as Benjamin really captures the wartime mood, also doing well setting up relationships.

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Matt Brunson

Film Frenzy

03/02/2025

3/4

Racing With the Moon is yet another coming-of-age drama filtered through the past, but what’s notable about it is how it frequently focuses on the idyllic aspects of small-town life, thus making WWII seem even further away.

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TV Guide

09/16/2008

2.5/4

Everyone tries hard, but the movie is essentially superficial and has difficulty sustaining audience interest.

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thiago s

@Thiagostone 07/06/2025

Filme mais ou menos, o roteiro é fraco, as cenas são mais ou menos, a história é fraca, o elenco é bacana, e alguns ajudam a melhorar o filme, os personagens são fracos, e o filme deveria ter cenas bem melhores e relevantes, para fazer o filme ser bom, e o drama do filme deu uma salvada.

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CodyZamboni Z

@CodyZamboni 11/11/2024

Solid character drama as 2 friends, soon to be drafted during WW2, spend their last weeks partying, dodging trains, and being carefree, But the good times are tempered by their real fears of of getting killed or losing a limb, ideas about being rich and poor, falling in love, and dealing with an unplanned pregnancy, All this tests their friendship, and forces them to grow up a bit faster. Spot on performances by Sean Penn and Nick Cage, Nice period detail, and location cinematography of a small California coastal town.

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Steve D

@RT35616104 08/24/2023

Breaks no new ground but does its job.

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12/17/2020

Simple character study of 2 young men waiting to go to war and the troubles they get into before being called up. Penn gives a mature yet subtle performanace as Hopper Nash as a yound man who falls in love for the first time and always needing to bail out his screwball friend (Cage).

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07/12/2019

Charmingly undervalued and underrated coming of age film. Sensitively acted and directed film which packs an emotional punch at its climax. Beautiful film score by Dave Grusin. Still stirs deep emotions 35 years after I first saw it. Production Values and massive budgets are not always key to making meaningful and poignant cinematic statements. This is proof that a good story with good actors and a sensitive ensemble can deliver a classic even if its under the radar. Kudos to director Richard Benjamin who I first remember as an actor in the Sunshine Boys with George Burns and Walter Matthau. I never knew how MUCH I liked this film until I saw it again after so much time.

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Thomas M

@TMProofreader 02/02/2019

The best romance movie ever made!

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Richard Benjamin

Director

Sean Penn

Henry 'Hopper' Nash

Elizabeth McGovern

Caddie Winger

Nicolas Cage

Nicky

John Karlen

Mr. Nash

Rutanya Alda

Mrs. Nash

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Synopsis

In their last weeks before deployment to World War II as Marines, teenage friends Henry Nash (Sean Penn) and Nicky (Nicolas Cage) try to make the best of the time they have left in their small California town. When Nash spots Caddie Winger (Elizabeth McGovern), a new girl in town he mistakenly believes to be wealthy, he sets about winning her over. But the good times are ruined when Nicky finds himself trying to solve a serious predicament, and implicating Nash and Caddie in the process.

Director: Richard Benjamin
Producer: Alain Bernheim, John Kohn
Screenwriter: Steve Kloves
Distributor: Paramount Pictures
Production Co: Paramount Pictures
Rating: PG
Genre: Romance
Original Language: English
Release Date (Theaters): Mar 23, 1984, Wide
Release Date (Streaming): Jan 1, 2011
Runtime: 1h 48m

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